Customized manufacturing method for an optoelectrical device

ABSTRACT

The disclosure provides a customized manufacturing method for an optoelectrical device. The customized manufacturing method comprises the steps of providing a manufacturing flow including a front-end flow, a customized module subsequent to the front-end flow, and a pause step between the front-end flow and the customized module, processing a predetermined amount of semi-manufactured products queued at the pause step, tuning the customized module in accordance with a customer&#39;s request, and processing the semi-manufactured products by the tuned customized module to fulfill the customer&#39;s request.

RELATED APPLICATION

The present application claims the right of priority based on TaiwanApplication Serial Number 097106746, filed Feb. 26, 2008, the disclosureof which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

1. Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to a customized manufacturing method foroptoelectrical devices.

2. Description of the Related Art

Semiconductor optoelectrical devices (ODs) such as light-emitting diodes(LED) or solar cells have been extensively recognized because of theireffectiveness in cost saving or capability to generate energy with lesspollution. Global environment organizations and governments havescheduled to implement such devices to resolve the problem of globalwarming. As the demand rapidly grows, traditional manufacturing factorythat manufactures in a manually or semiautomatic way has to face thechallenges of shorter delivery period to customers andproduct/specification diversity for versatile applications. Besides theexpansion of product lines in response with the fast growing demand andthe diverse applications, an efficient process flow and swift responseto customer's request are also urged to be improved.

SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE

The disclosure provides a customized manufacturing method foroptoelectrical devices. The method considers both customer's request andefficient manufacture to accelerate the industry implementation.

The present disclosure provides a customized manufacturing method foroptoelectrical devices. The customized manufacturing method comprisesthe steps of providing a manufacturing flow including a front-end flow,a customized module subsequent to the front-end flow, and a pause stepbetween the front-end flow and the customized module, processing apredetermined amount of semi-manufactured products queued at the pausestep, tuning the customized module in accordance with a customer'srequest, and processing the semi-manufactured products by the tunedcustomized module to fulfill the customer's request.

In accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure, thecustomer's request comprises a requirement of brightness.

In accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure, thecustomer's request comprises a requirement of light-field shape orlight-field angle.

In accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure, thecustomer's request comprises a requirement of luminous wavelength.

In accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure, thecustomer's request comprises a requirement of thermal resistance.

In accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure, thecustomized module comprises a pre-formed lookup table or relation curvefor tuning the customized module.

In accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure, theoptoelectrical device comprises light-emitting diode or solar cell.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a flow chart illustrating the customized manufacturing methodin accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a flow chart further illustrating the first customized moduleQ1.

FIG. 3 is a flow chart further illustrating the second customized moduleQ2.

FIG. 4 is a flow chart further illustrating the third customized moduleQ3.

FIG. 5 is a flow chart further illustrating the fourth customized moduleQ4.

FIG. 6 is a flow chart illustrating the customized manufacturing methodin accordance with another embodiment of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

FIG. 1 describes a customized manufacturing method in accordance withone embodiment of the present disclosure comprises a manufacturing flowhaving steps S1 to S7, a group of customized modules Q1 to Q4 interposedbetween steps S4 and S5, and a pause step T1 before each of modules Q1to Q4. Each of the steps and modules are described in detailhereinafter:

Step S1 (Substrate wafer): providing a substrate wafer for growing asemiconductor epitaxy stack. The substrate wafer comprises a GaAs waferfor growing AlGaInP-based materials, or sapphire, GaN, or SiC wafer forgrowing InGaN-based materials, or Si, Ge, or GaAs wafer for growingIII-V photovoltaic stack.Step S2 (Epitaxy growth): growing an epitaxial stack havingoptoelectrical property on the substrate wafer, for example, alight-emitting stack or photovoltaic stack.Step S3 (Wafer detection): testing the epitaxial stack on the substratewafer by a wafer tester to detect whether the optoelectrical criteria ismet or not. The optoelectrical criteria comprise the current value in afixed voltage or the luminous wavelength features, such as peakwavelength, or half-peak width.Step S4 (Chip formation): defining a plurality of chip regions andelectrode regions on the substrate wafer by lithography and etchingprocesses.Module Q1 (First customized module): tuning first customized module Q1in response to a customer's requirement of brightness P1 for customer'sacceptance. The detail of the first customized module Q1 will bedescribed subsequently.Module Q2 (Second customized module): tuning second customized module Q2in response to a customer's requirement of light-field P2 for customer'sacceptance. The detail of the second customized module Q2 will bedescribed subsequently.Module Q3 (Third customized module): tuning third customized module Q3in response to a customer's requirement of luminous wavelength P3 forcustomer's acceptance. The detail of the third customized module Q3 willbe described subsequently.Module Q4 (Fourth customized module): tuning fourth customized module Q4in response to a customer's requirement of thermal resistance P4 forcustomer's acceptance. The detail of the fourth customized module Q4will be described subsequently.Step S5 (Electrode formation): forming a p-side and an n-side electrodeon each of the electrode regions of the chips for electricallyconnecting to external circuits.Step S6 (Chip detection): testing the chips on the wafer by a chiptester to detect whether the optoelectrical criteria is met or not. Theoptoelectrical criteria comprise the current value in a fixed voltage,the luminous wavelength features, such as peak wavelength, or half-peakwidth.Step S7 (Chip dicing): after the above-mentioned manufacturing flow,dicing the wafer to form chips to accomplish the customizedoptoelectrical device that fulfills the customer's request.

For better interpretation, the manufacturing flow before the pause stepT1 is generally called the front-end flow, the manufacturing flow afterthe customized module is generally called the subsequent flow. The pausestep T1 in-between the front-end flow and the step of the customizedmodule is for preserving semi-manufactured products fabricated from thefront-end flow. Upon receiving the customer's request, thesemi-manufactured products are released for the corresponding customizedmodule in accordance with the customer's request. Furthermore, the pausestep comprises timing the queued time of the semi-manufacturing productspreserved at the pause step T1 and setting up a predetermined criticaltime. When the queued time is less than the predetermined critical time,the semi-manufactured products proceed to process by the correspondingcustomized module in response to the customer's request. If thecustomer's request has not been received or confirmed when the queuedtime is equal to or more than the predetermined critical time, thesemi-manufactured products proceed to the by-pass step BP1 and directlyjumped to the subsequent flow.

FIG. 2 to FIG. 5 further disclose the customized modules Q1 to Q4 shownin FIG. 1.

FIG. 2 further discloses the first customized modules Q1 shown inFIG. 1. First, a certain amount of the semi-manufactured productsprocessed by the front-end flow are preserved at the pause step T1, andare released for the first customized module Q1 while a customer'srequest about the requirement of brightness P1 is received. The firstcustomized module Q1 comprises a sub-module a1 and a sub-module a2corresponding to the requirement of brightness promotion and therequirement of brightness reduction respectively. The promotion orreduction of brightness is compared with the standard product notprocessed by any customized modules. The sub-module a1 comprises a stepof surface texturing by the traditional lithography/etching process toform a rough surface or a patterned surface with a regular or irregularsurface on the epitaxial stack or the substrate wafer for brightnesspromotion. The roughness of the rough surface or the pattern of thepatterned surface can be achieved by tuning a customized parameter ap1such as etching time, pattern density, or pattern dimension. Thesub-module a1 further comprises a pre-formed lookup table or relationcurve recording the corresponding relationship between the values of thecustomized parameter ap1 and the values of brightness to be promotedsuch that the requirement of brightness promotion can be achieved byselecting the corresponding value of the corresponding customizedparameter according to the customer's request. The sub-module a2comprises a step of forming a shielding layer by depositing a thin metalfilm on the epitaxial stack for absorbing a proportion of light emittingfrom the epitaxial stack for brightness reduction. The effect of theshielding layer can be altered by tuning a customized parameter ap2 suchas the thickness of the shielding layer. The sub-module a2 furthercomprises a pre-formed lookup table or relation curve recording thecorresponding relationship between the values of the customizedparameter ap2 and the values of brightness to be reduced such that therequirement of brightness reduction can be achieved by selecting thecorresponding value of the customized parameter according to thecustomer's request.

FIG. 3 further discloses the second customized modules Q2 shown inFIG. 1. First, a certain amount of the semi-manufactured productsprocessed in the front-end flow are preserved at the pause step T1, andare released for the second customized module Q2 while a customer'srequest about the requirement of light-field P2 is received. The secondcustomized module Q2 comprises a sub-module b1 and a sub-module b2corresponding to the requirement of light-field shape and light-fieldangle respectively. The sub-module b1 comprises a step of forming amicro-structure layer on or within the epitaxial stack to meet therequirement of light-field shape. The light-field shape can be adjustedby tuning the form of the micro-structure such as an irregular surfaceon the micro-structure for forming a scattering light-field shape, themicro-structure with photonics crystal for forming a coaxial light-fieldshape, or a slanted surface on the micro-structure for forming a sidelight-field shape. The sub-module b1 further comprises a pre-formedlookup table for selecting the corresponding form of the micro-structureaccording to the customer's request to meet the requirement of thelight-field shape. The sub-module b2 comprises a step of forming atuning layer of light-field angle on or within the epitaxial stack forthe requirement of light-field angle. The tuning layer comprises amulti-layered structure having varied refraction indices on or withinthe epitaxial stack to make the light-field angle convergent ordivergent. For example, the tuning layer comprises alternate stackedSiO₂/Si₃N₄ layers, and the light-field angle can be adjusted by tuning acustomized parameter bp2 such as the number of pair of the stackedSiO₂/Si₃N₄ layers. The sub-module b2 further comprises a pre-formedlookup table or relation curve recording the corresponding relationshipbetween the values of the customized parameter bp2 and the values oflight-field angle such that the requirement of light-field angle can beachieved by selecting the corresponding value of the customizedparameter according to the customer's request.

FIG. 4 further discloses the third customized modules Q3 shown inFIG. 1. First, a certain amount of the semi-manufactured productsprocessed in the front-end flow are preserved at the pause step T1, andare released for the third customized module Q3 while a customer'srequest about luminous wavelength P3 is received. The third customizedmodule Q3 comprises a sub-module cl corresponding to the requirement ofluminous wavelength. The sub-module cl comprises a step of forming awavelength-converting layer on or within the epitaxial stack to meet therequirement of luminous wavelength. The luminous wavelength can beadjusted by tuning a customized parameter cp1 such as the selection of aproper wavelength-converting material for converting the wavelength oflight emitted from the epitaxial stack, ex. 390 to 460 nm near-UV orblue light, into wavelength spectrum of green, orange, or red light. Thesub-module cl further comprises a pre-formed lookup table for selectingthe corresponding wavelength-converting material according to thecustomer's request to meet the requirement of the luminous wavelength.

FIG. 5 further discloses the fourth customized modules Q4 shown inFIG. 1. First, a certain amount of the semi-manufactured productsprocessed in the front-end flow are preserved at the pause step T1, andare released for the fourth customized module Q4 while a customer'srequest about thermal resistance P4 is received. The fourth customizedmodule Q4 comprises a sub-module d1 and a sub-module d2. The sub-moduled1 comprises a step of thinning the substrate wafer with the epitaxialstack formed thereon or removing the substrate wafer from the epitaxialstack to reduce the thermal resistance of the optoelectrical device. Thethermal resistance can be adjusted by tuning a customized parameter dp1such as the thickness of the thinned substrate wafer to meet therequirement of thermal resistance. The sub-module d1 further comprises apre-formed lookup table or relation curve that records the correspondingrelationship between the values of the customized parameter dp1 and thevalues of thermal resistance such that the requirement of thermalresistance can be achieved by selecting the corresponding value of thecustomized parameter according to the customer's request. The sub-moduled2 comprises a step of transferring substrate wafer by firstly selectingand bonding a thermally-conducting support to the epitaxial stack, andthen removing the substrate wafer. The thermal resistance can beadjusted by tuning a customized parameter dp2 such as the thermalconductivity of the thermally-conducting support to meet the requirementof thermal resistance. The sub-module d2 further comprises a pre-formedlookup table recording the corresponding relationship between the valuesof the customized parameter dp2 and the values of thermal resistancesuch that the requirement of thermal resistance can be achieved byselecting the corresponding value of the customized parameter accordingto the customer's request.

FIG. 6 describes another customized manufacturing method in accordancewith the present disclosure. The first to third customized modules Q1˜Q3are arranged successively between step S4 and S5. The fourth customizedmodule Q4 is between Step S5 and S6. Pause step T2 to T5 are arrangedbefore each of the corresponding customized modules Q1˜Q4. Each of thepause steps T2˜T5 comprises timing the queued time of thesemi-manufacturing products preserved in the pause step and setting up apredetermined critical time. When the queued time is less than apredetermined critical time, the semi-manufactured products are releasedto be processed by the corresponding customized module in response tothe customer's request. The predetermined critical time is about 1 to 90days, 1 to 30 days, 1 to 7 days, or less than 24 hours. In other words,for the quality control purpose, it is preferred to release thesemi-manufactured products that have been hold for a period shorter thanthe predetermined critical time to the customized module. If thecustomer's request has not been received or confirmed when the queuedtime is equal to or more than the predetermined critical time, thesemi-manufactured products proceed to the corresponding by-pass stepBP2˜BPS and directly jumped to the subsequent flow.

Also, it will be apparent to those having ordinary skill in the art thatvarious modifications and variations can be made to the methods inaccordance with the present disclosure without departing from the scopeor spirit of the disclosure. In view of the foregoing, it is intendedthat the present disclosure cover modifications and variations of thisdisclosure provided they fall within the scope of the following claimsand their equivalents.

1. A customized manufacturing method for an optoelectrical device,comprising the steps of: providing a manufacturing flow including afront-end flow, a customized module subsequent to the front-end flow,and a pause step between the front-end flow and the customized module;processing a predetermined amount of semi-manufactured products queuedat the pause step; receiving at least one customer's request withrespect to the customized module; tuning the customized module inaccordance with the customer's request; and processing thesemi-manufactured products by the tuned customized module.
 2. Thecustomized manufacturing method according to claim 1, wherein the stepof tuning the customized module comprises the step of tuning acustomized parameter of the customized module.
 3. The customizedmanufacturing method according to claim 1, wherein the customized modulecomprises a set of sub-modules, and the step of tuning the customizedmodule comprises the step of selecting one of the sub-modules to fulfillthe customer's request.
 4. The customized manufacturing method accordingto claim 2, wherein the customized parameter is tuned according to apre-formed lookup table or relation curve.
 5. The customizedmanufacturing method according to claim 1, wherein the semi-manufacturedproducts are queued at the pause step within a predetermined criticaltime.
 6. The customized manufacturing method according to claim 5,wherein the predetermined critical time is between 1 and 90 days.
 7. Thecustomized manufacturing method according to claim 5, wherein thepredetermined critical time is less than 24 hours.
 8. The customizedmanufacturing method according to claim 1, wherein the customer'srequest comprises at least one requirement selected from the groupconsisting of the requirement of brightness, the requirement of luminouswavelength, the requirement of light-field shape, the requirement oflight-field angle, and the requirement of thermal resistance.
 9. Thecustomized manufacturing method according to claim 1, wherein theoptoelectrical device comprises light-emitting diode or solar cell. 10.A customized manufacturing method for an optoelectrical device,comprising the steps of: providing a manufacturing flow including afront-end flow, a customized module subsequent to the front-end flow,and a pause step between the front-end flow and the customized module;processing a predetermined amount of semi-manufactured products queuedat the pause step; receiving a customer's request with respect to thecustomized module; timing a queued time of the semi-manufacturedproducts queued at the pause step; tuning the first customized module inaccordance with the customer's request; comparing the queued time with apredetermined critical time; and processing the semi-manufacturedproducts by the tuned customized module if the queued time is less thanthe predetermined critical time.
 11. The customized manufacturing methodaccording to claim 10, wherein the step of tuning the customized modulecomprises the step of tuning a customized parameter of the customizedmodule.
 12. The customized manufacturing method according to claim 10,wherein the customized module comprises a set of sub-modules, and thestep of tuning the customized module comprises the step of selecting oneof the sub-modules to fulfill the customer's request.
 13. The customizedmanufacturing method according to claim 11, wherein the customizedparameter is tuned according to a pre-formed lookup table or relationcurve.
 14. The customized manufacturing method according to claim 10,wherein the predetermined critical time is between 1 and 90 days. 15.The customized manufacturing method according to claim 10, wherein thepredetermined critical time is less than 24 hours.
 16. The customizedmanufacturing method according to claim 10, wherein the customer'srequest comprises at least one requirement selected from the groupconsisting of the requirement of brightness, the requirement of luminouswavelength, the requirement of light-field shape, the requirement oflight-field angle, and the requirement of thermal resistance.
 17. Thecustomized manufacturing method according to claim 10, wherein theoptoelectrical device comprises light-emitting diode or solar cell. 18.The customized manufacturing method according to claim 10, furthercomprising the step of bypassing the customized module if the queuedtime is equal to or more than the predetermined critical time.